How effective are the opening sequences we watched in class?

In class we watched a few VERY different opening sequences, to try and inspire us for when we start to plan and write our own opening sequences.

All three of the clips we watched showed the protagonists feelings in some way, as well as prompting an emotive reaction from the audience. In Salam Bombay, there is a moment were there is a close up of the child with a horrified expression on his face. There is no sound (other than the boy’s heavy breathing) and the shot is shown for several seconds. This builds up tension, until the next shot shows an empty space where the circus he was traveling with was. In this moment the audience experiences real empathy, conjuring up all several questions: Why have they left him? Will they come back for him? What will he do next? In Ali, the entire opening sequence is a montage which includes a close up of the main character punching some kind of boxing-training equipment repeatedly and at a fast pace, with the shot taken from behind the equipment. The effect of this than rather, say just a regular close up of his face, shows his determination to improve his boxing skills, almost as if it’s just as much a part of his character as any expression on his face. A similar idea is used in 8 ½, but in a different way. While the other 2 movies told a story through the characters facial expression, the face of the main character in 8 ½ is never actually seen. I think this is a very effective idea, as the audience is never too sure about how he is reacting to all of the surreal events happening to him, which could make it quite an ambiguous opening.

Sound is another medium used in these films to convey some kind of tone. In Salam Bombay, there are only a few lines of dialogue and non-diegetic music playing throughout the scene. In the part of the scene where the child runs towards the empty fairground, the music quickens, reflecting the character’s sense of urgency. Ali, however uses the music to reflect the time the film was set in, as there is jazz music (both diegetic and non-diegetic at different points), reflecting both the decade and the surge of black music during that time. Also, it’s quite significant that the only dialogue heard in the sequence is that of the people trying to crush his spirit (heckling by the police while he’s running) and those trying to tell him how to combat the prejudice he faces (preacher in the church). This gives the audience an insight to the kind of contradictory feelings he must have, making the audience empathise with him from the very start. In 8 ½, there is no dialogue, but a really poignant point in the scene is when the main character is locked in a car and is gassed. He begins to bang on the window with the palms of his hands which – set against the eerie silence around him and the fact that everyone else in the scene is watching him die rather than helping – makes the audience feel very uncomfortable, as if they are watching something quite horrific. Interestingly, in all three openings the protagonist never atually has any dialogue, meaning the audience has to rely on enterpreting their actions rather than their words.